Judicial Branch preAP

Jurisdiction Jurisdiction –the authority to hear certain cases. The United States is a DUAL system: State courts have jurisdiction over cases involving state law Federal courts have jurisdiction over cases involving federal laws (treaties, ?s w/ the Constitution, maritime law, interstate suits, etc). Aka ‘exclusive jurisdiction’ Concurrent jurisdiction-when both federal and state courts have authority over a case

Types of jurisdiction The court in which the case is originally tried is called the trial court. The trial court has original jurisdiction. If a person who loses a case in a trial court wishes to appeal a decision, he may take the case to a court with appellate jurisdiction.

Art. III & the Judiciary Act of 1789 This act, passed by the first session of Congress, details the judicial branch’s structure.

3 tiered system

Tier 1-district courts District courts-94 districts. Trial courts for both criminal and civil cases. Two types of juries: – Grand jury: hears charges against a person committed of a crime. If the grand jury believes there is enough evidence to go to trial, it issues an indictment-a formal accusation. – Petit jury: a trial jury that hears evidence and testimony at a trial and decides innocence or guilt. Few decisions of district courts are appealed.

There are two special trial courts that have nationwide jurisdiction over certain types of cases. 1. The Court of International Trade addresses cases involving international trade and customs issues. 2. The United States Court of Federal Claims has jurisdiction over most claims for money damages against the United States, disputes over federal contracts, unlawful "takings" of private property by the federal government, and a variety of other claims against the United States.

Tier 2-federal court of appeals Federal courts of appeals-12 judicial circuits, or regions. 13 th circuit court is the US Federal Court of Appeals- hears cases of appeal about patents and some international law. A panel of judges hear an appeal. 3 decisions: – Uphold the original decision, – Reverse the decision, or – Send the case back to the lower court to be heard again

Alabama is located within the 11 th circuit. The courthouse for the 11 th circuit is located in Atlanta.

Tier 3-Supreme Court Article III of the Constitution establishes the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is the nation’s highest court. All decisions are final and all lower courts must obey its decisions. All cases are heard in the Supreme Court building in Washington, DC.

Supreme Court, c’ued The SC has both original jurisdiction and appellate jurisdiction. Original jurisdiction cases: 1) cases involving foreign govts, and 2) certain cases in which states are a party. Original jurisdiction cases are a very small % of the Court’s workload. Most cases are appeals. The SC receives about 10,000 cases for petition each year. The SC actually reviews only about 75 of those.

SC Justices The SC is composed of 9 justices. There is one chief justice and 8 associate justices. Only one justice has been impeached, but was acquitted in the Senate. 4 factors of consideration when nominating justices: Legal experience Party affiliation Judicial philosophy Senate approval

Factors presidents consider when appointing justices 1.Experience: most have a law degree and some experience as a judge in a federal court 2.Party affiliation: although they are supposed to be apolitical, presidents appoint a justice with a similar ideology.

Factors presidents consider when appointing justices 3. Judicial philosophy Judicial restraint: judges who strictly interpret the Constitution. Judicial activism: judges who interpret the constitution with modern realities in mind. 4. Opinion of the Senate: Nominees have to be confirmed by the Senate. Senatorial courtesy: a senator from the same state as the nominee AND the same party of the president can block a nominee for any reason and other senators support it. Only for federal courts, not SC.

TaftHugo Black Sandra Day O’Connor Thurgood Marshall

The Court’s procedures The majority of SC cases are appeals. Petition for Writ of Certiorari-document filed by a losing party in a case asking the SC to review-”Cert Petition” The Court may issue a writ of certiorari- decision to hear an appeal

The Court’s procedures, c’ued The SC is free to pick which cases it wants to review, and it rejects more than 90% of requests for cert. In deciding to accept a case, the Court operates by the “rule of four.” If 4 of the 9 agree to accept a case, the Court will do so.

Case procedure Most of the activity of the SC goes on behind the scenes with only a small part taking place in an open courtroom. After the Court accepts a case, the lawyers on each side submit a brief-written statement with the arguments, relevant facts, and precedents supporting their side of the case.

Amicus curiae Amicus curiae- “friend of the court” briefs written by an outside party with an interest in the outcome of a case. Can be from interest groups, govt agencies, etc.

After briefs are filed, a lawyer for each side presents a 30 min. oral argument before the Court.

The conference The justices meet in secret to debate and discuss the cases they have heard. A majority of justices must be in agreement to decide a case & at least 6 must be present for a decision. If there is a tie, the lower court’s decision is left standing.

Precedent All courts respect precedent-previous court rulings on a given legal question. Precedent is intended to be a guide or example for future cases so that the court system is consistent. “stare decisis”- principle that means “let the decision stand”-respecting precedent

The opinion For major cases, the Court issues at least one written opinion. The opinion states the facts of the case, announces the Court’s ruling, and explains its reasoning in reaching the decision. The Chief Justice usually decides which justice writes the opinion.

4 Types of opinions 1.Unanimous opinion-all justices vote the same way. About 1/3 of the Court’s decisions are unanimous. 2.Majority opinion-majority of justices voted the same way 3.Concurring opinion-one or more justices agree with the majority, but for different reasons

4. Dissenting opinion-opinion of the justices on the losing side